- sarah098667
TSA PreCheck and Global Entry vs MPC
Have you been wanting to travel outside of the United States.. and you hear all the different things about customs and TSA precheck etc? And it just confuses you?
Here are some of the top things to know about each of these options.
TSA PRECHECK
TSA PreCheck is what allows you to process your screening time more quickly and efficiently as you pass through security at the gates at the airport.
What's great about the Precheck is that it allows you to not have to remove your shoes, laptops, liquids, belts, and light jackets as you go through security. Which just stream lines the process so much more quickly as you don't have to wait for anyone to do all these things in front of you.
You do still have to undergo an in person interview and a background check, but if you travel with kids under the age of 12, they get to join you as their parent/guardian in the PreCheck line. However, if they are over the age of 12, they will need to apply for their own clearance.
The cost of this is $78 and is good for 5 years. When you apply, they will provide you with a KTN (Known Traveler Number) that you apply to your airline when purchasing tickets and prior to receiving your boarding passes. To access the TSA PreCheck lane, you will need to have Precheck on your boarding pass.
For more info and to apply click this link!
Going through Customs
When coming back into the United States, regardless if you have a connecting flight or not, you will need to go through Customs.
Whether you have Global Entry, are using MPC, or are just going to go through the regular customs line, everyone entering back in to the United States must do that this. Something else you will need to do that I wasn't aware of when we traveled, was that you will need to collect your checked baggage and re check it. There are signs that help you navigate where to go!
There are a couple options to expedite this process for you and your family though! (there are also other options for others, but for basic families traveling... these are what I'm highlighting, please see www.cbp.gov for all info)
Global Entry
According to www.cbp.gov, global entry allows expedited clearance for pre approved, low risk travelers upon arrival in the United States. You enter the United States through automated kiosks at select airports.
You will need to submit an application and then reserve at time for an in person in depth interview and intensive background check before you can be approved for Global Entry.
I have heard that sometimes these interviews are hard to get and it can be several months before you can even grab an interview. Not all airports do them, and you may need to be willing to travel to an airport that does them. (For example, according to the website, my enrollment center is about 3 hours from me in my state.)
The cost is a non refundable $100 when you apply. And once approved, you will be contacted to schedule your interview. All travelers in your family will need to have this for themselves. But Global Entry does include TSA Precheck as well.
In my opinion, Global Entry is a great option for those that travel outside of the US several times a year.
Please see this link for all up to date info:
Mobile Passport Control (MPC)
MPC is a free app you can download to your smartphone. It allows travelers to submit their passport and customs declaration through a free and secure app. You do not need any pre-approval and you can experience shorter wait times at customs!
I wanted to talk about this option because this is what we used on our latest trip to Mexico and coming back into the States. We were fortunately traveling into an airport that had MPC available. So when we landed, I turned airplane mode off my phone, and as we were arriving to the gate (and before we got off the airplane), I scanned all our passports, took a picture of each person in my travel party, answered a couple questions for the customs declaration and they gave me a QR code.
Once we were off the airplane, we headed to customs.
We saw lines for Global Entry, MPC, and the regular customs line. There was NO ONE in the MPC line. We had never used it before, so we decided to go ahead and try. We were through customs in literally 3 minutes. And that's only because the machine took a little bit to load to read out QR code. The regular customs line was slated to be about 20 minutes, but looked like it would be longer than that.
It was really that easy.
The only downside to MPC is that it's only available at 44 sites. 32 international airports, 8 Canadian Pre Clearance locations and 4 seaports of entry. So, if you are not traveling into one of the airports that has it, you will still need to go through the regular customs line.
However, I think it's worth it if you do find yourself at one of the participating airports!
Find more information on MPC here:
Here we are after getting through our first flight from Puerto Vallarta to Dallas, going through customs, security again (where my oldest did NOT dump out of his water in his bottle and it became a WHOLE thing in the security line. Don't forget to dump out your water bottle before hitting security. Do NOT be like us and make the TSA agents mad.) and then heading home! We had the last seats on the plane. LONG 11 hour travel day and my boys were still smiling! Traveling with Teens is easy!
If you have any questions regarding traveling outside of the United States, let me know! I'm happy to help!
-Sarah
